The Darkness Series: Book one, The Beginning

Chapter 1: The Hotel

When I wake up the sun is shining through my mansion window, making me crazy not being able to see what time it was. I tilted my head and looked over the blue clock that shone its numbers on the wall. I was going to be late if I didn’t get ready to go to the hotel right now. My father had already set out my suit, the same one that I wore to his meeting every day but this day is different we were going to our hotel, mine, ours. My name is Axel Evans and I am sixteen years old, and I am one of the richest kids in the world. I ran to the bathroom almost slipping on the warm tile floor and slammed it shut. The cream colored walls and floor made the room seem like a vanilla ice cream cone, the glass shower had a design on it that made it look like vines creeping its way up to the top and into the shower. The cool sensation of the water made me have chills and yet made me smile; the yellow soap ran down my body and into the drain while the hot steam filled the rest of the bathroom. Nothing could ruin this day not even the hot sun that would never go away just for a minute. This is the last time I will be in this house after today, and all of my other things will be sold along with my bed, my parents bed, and everything else that Ashley took care of each day, I am going to miss her most of all maybe she will visit the hotel when we get settled in. After fifteen minutes the shower cuts of, ever since the last water bill my dad wont let me take showers over fifteen minutes. I pulled on a white towel and walked out into my room for the last time before we left. Ashley sat my breakfast on the table and smiled as she adjusted her apron across her black dress, her silver hair brushed around onto the side of her neck made me remember how old she was, she was almost eighty five, she won’t be here much longer.  

          “Good morning Mr. Evans.” She handed my suit and gave me a hug

          “Im going to miss you Ashley, come visit anytime.” Her arms loosen and drop to her sides, I can tell when she is unhappy but she doesn’t seem like she wants to talk about it.

          “I am going to miss you too Mr. Evans.” She lowers her head and walks out of the door leaving me alone. I unwrap the towel and pull on a fresh pair of blue boxers that some how matched my tie. The fresh eggs and bacon smell filled my room and was pulling me in to just have a taste, nothing could smell better, but I can’t eat it just yet I need to finish getting ready. The cold room and the light shutting off means that this is no longer my home; my new home is the Shadow Hotel. My father bursts into my room just as I adjusted my tie to make it seem official; I am the richest teenager in the world. I smile up to him as his black hair and scruffy gray beard trimmed just right, he was wearing a black suit with no other color, he seemed like he was going to a funeral. My mother walked up behind him slipping her pale arm around his, they were completely different, she had her golden hair tied up into a swirl that rested on her head, her shimmering white dress that sparkled with each movement and was wearing a pearl necklace that they had found on a diving adventure that they went on before they found out that she was pregnant with me. 

          “Come on.” My father said, “We don’t have all day, tick tock!”

          “Let him finish his breakfast, he only has to drink his juice.” My mother smiled but was cut short.

          “He can have a drink at the hotel.” My father pulled my arm out the door leaving the juice on the bed, Ashley walked past us and picked up my bags, I should have carried them but I couldn’t get my arm away from my father, he was two times stronger than I was, if he wasn’t wearing his suit and just wearing normal clothes his muscles would be bulging out of his shirt. I tried to wiggle out of his massive hands but couldn’t, we were out of the door before I could get out of his hands.

          “Dad, you can’t just drag me out of the house, I need some space.”

          His dark brown eyes had fire dancing around inside of them; I shouldn’t have said that, I need to think before I talk.

          “Your right, I should put you on a leash.” He laughed a monstrous laugh that made the ground shake; I must have been imagining it. Ashley stumbles down the stairs but stays up she is getting old. She hands me my bag and smile her toothy grin.

          “Goodbye Mr. and Mrs. Evans.” She shakes their hands and gives me a hug, “Be good please.”

          I nod my head and she opens the limo door, I look back over the white mansion I grew up in for sixteen years and feel a little sad, all of those memories will fade away into the hotel, and stay missing. My mother and father climb into the limo and Ashley shut the door locking us away for about an hour, she waved as the limo scooted forward and down the hilly road, I looked back at the white mansion to see it disappear behind a few trees. The hour was agonizing my parent flirting and sipping some kind of yellow drink, all of the drink colors were weird, not like long ago, I still have trouble writing the date I was so used to writing 2176, I have never been good at remembering the year, I would always have to ask. I need to remember the year is 2177, remember the year Axel, remember that. I looked out the window and saw the top of the glass dome, my father had told me that a glass dome was covering the lobby and it was ten inches thick, nothing could break it. The limo scooted to a halt and the door swung open and I saw the golden tan walls of the hotel gleaming in front of me, the bright red ribbon and silver scissors sitting on the table next to it, I was going to cut the ribbon, letting people into the hotel. I put on my biggest smile and climbed out of the limo after my parents.

          “Welcome all to the grand opening of Shadow Hotel, we all would love to know what the inside looks like.” He pauses and pulls out a paper from his pocket; it must have been one of his “famous” speeches.

          “Now all who come to this magnificent hotel, welcome, all who live here shall be happy and joyous at all times. This beautiful place is now your home and you need to look like you deserve to live here. In the back of the hotel is a store where you may buy some designer suits and dresses made by my wife.” He extends his hand to her and the crowd roars. The sky seemed to darken but no one else noticed, maybe it was going to snow soon.   

          “Axel Evans my son, shall cut the rope now welcoming you to your new home.” He picked up the large sparkling silver scissors and handed them over to me, my smile must have seemed brighter than the scissors because the people became silent.  I turned to the bright red ribbon and opened up the silver scissors and lifted them up above the ribbon and clipped the ribbon with a thwack.

          “Welcome all.” He pushed open the double doors and let himself, my mother, and I inside first. The polished golden floors and walls were the first thing to stand out, the water trickling down from the top floor into the pond that was close to the back of the lobby made the hotel have a calm feel to it.  All of the warm colors and new smells of my home made me smile, nothing could be better than this. I walked over to the glass elevator and pressed the thirty, thirty floors, that it way to much just for a teenager, as I looked down to the lobby I passed a large crystal chandelier that shadowed over the lobby, people rushed in and pressed buttons and sat down on the colored chairs. They must be new to riches by the way they act, the elevator dings and i run down the hall and run into a girl a little shorter than me.

"Watch it!" she screams to me, what am I supposed to say to that, wonderful way to start off the day.